Leerink analyst Andrew Berens noted that GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Tesaro (TSRO) disclosed background details for their deal agreement in a filing this morning. The documents show several parties were interested in a strategic transaction with Tesaro at various points over the last year, though the strategic interest appears to have been driven by Glaxo and one additional company, identified as "Party A", Berens said. It is not clear why the six other contacted parties were not interested in pursuing a strategic transaction, but he thinks Party A's co-promote proposal and the initial interest of other potential acquirers indicates strategic interest in the economics surrounding a PARP. Berens, who continues to see Clovis (CLVS) being well-positioned as the remaining stand-alone PARP-focused company, keeps an Outperform rating on Clovis and Market Perform rating on Tesaro.

Gabelli analyst Jing He highlights Clovis (CLVS) as his top biotech pick in 2019. With the Tesaro (TSRO) acquisition by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Clovis will become the only standalone PARP, which the analyst believes makes it the most likely takeout target in 2019. He continues to believe Bristol-Myers (BMY), Sanofi (SNY) and Roche (RHHBY) to be the most interested buyers. The analyst reiterates a Buy rating on Clovis' shares.

12/10/18

LEHM

12/10/18DOWNGRADETarget $75LEHMEqual Weight

Tesaro downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays

Barclays analyst Gena Wang downgraded Tesaro (TSRO) to Equal Weight citing the takeover by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). The analyst raised her price target for the shares to $75 from $48.

12/05/18

CANT

12/05/18DOWNGRADETarget $75CANTNeutral

Tesaro downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Alethia Young downgraded Tesaro (TSRO) to Neutral to reflect the takeover by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). The analyst raised her price target for the shares to $75 from $68.

NVSNovartis

$80.51

-1.35 (-1.65%)

05/09/19

STFL

05/09/19NO CHANGESTFLBuy

Novartis deal makes Aerie 'look like a steal' at current levels, says Stifel

Stifel analyst Annabel Samimy said Novartis' (NVS) agreement to buy Takeda's (TAK) dry eye product Xiidra for $3.4B upfront in cash and up to an additional $1.9B in potential milestone payments "clearly frames the value for innovative ophthalmologic assets" and makes shares of Aerie Pharmaceuticals (AERI) "look like a steal." Applying the same peak sales multiple that Novartis paid for Xiidra implies a market-value of greater than $6B for Aerie, said Samimy, who noted that she does not expect an immediate takeout of Aerie but remains a buyer of the shares.

Wells Fargo analyst David Maris believes the lawsuit by 44 states against 20 generic drugmakers will weigh on generic drug stocks this week and remain an "overhang issue for some time." Actual penalties and damages are impossible to calculate, but could be material, Maris tells investors in a research note. The analyst spoke to the Connecticut attorney general's office this morning and learned they are preparing for trial in these cases. Language the attorney general has used, such as "unprecedented" and his desire to clawback all gains from collusion, should be indicative of the states' intent, Maris writes. He believes that for a sector that is generally highly levered, and with some companies named already facing an overhang from opioid litigation like Teva (TEVA), this is "especially unwelcome news."

05/09/19

LEHM

05/09/19NO CHANGETarget $245LEHMEqual Weight

Barclays cuts Biogen target to $245 on reduced Spinraza estimates

Barclays analyst Geoff Meacham lowered his price target for Biogen (BIIB) to $245 from $250 citing growing uncertainty in spinal muscular atrophy. Concerns over Spinraza in spinal muscular atrophy have intensified with the impending launch of Novartis' (NVS) gene therapy Zolgensma and Roche (RHHBY)/PTC's (PTCT) oral risdiplam, Meacham tells investors in a research note. The analyst says his feedback from key opinion leaders was "direct and unequivocal," with the leaders predicting "robust uptake" of both Zolgensma and risdiplam given signs of improved efficacy. This was at the expense of Spinraza driven by the clinical burden of intrathecal injections, says Meacham. On the basis of this feedback, he lowered his longer-term Spinraza outlook by ~$150M per year. The analyst now forecasts sales of $2.0B in 2019, declining to $1.7B in 2023. He keeps an Equal Weight rating on Biogen.

DNABought by RHHBY

$0.00

(0.00%)

CELGCelgene

$94.08

-1.45 (-1.52%)

05/03/19

LEHM

05/03/19UPGRADETarget $55LEHMOverweight

Bristol-Myers upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays

Barclays analyst Geoffrey Meacham upgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) to Overweight from Equal Weight and raised his price target for the shares to $55 from $53. The analyst says increased confidence in the Celgene (CELG) acquisition successfully closing makes him more bullish on Bristol-Myers shares. Increased optionality from the Celgene pipeline along with a "differentiated" growth profile and earnings power over the next few years make the combined company attractive at current share levels, Meacham tells investors in a research note.

05/03/19

LEHM

05/03/19DOWNGRADETarget $102LEHMEqual Weight

Celgene downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays

Barclays analyst Geoffrey Meacham downgraded Celgene (CELG) to Equal Weight from Overweight to reflect his increased confidence that the takeover by Bristol-Myers (BMY) will close. The analyst, who upgraded Bristol-Myers this morning to Overweight, says his thesis on Celgene has played out. He keeps a $102 price target for the shares.

05/03/19

JPMS

05/03/19INITIATIONTarget $62JPMSOverweight

Bristol-Myers reinstated with an Overweight at JPMorgan

Following a period of restriction, JPMorgan analyst Chris Schott reinstated coverage of Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) with an Overweight rating and $62 price target. The analyst had an Overweight rating on the shares and price target of $70 prior to restriction. While the company's proposed acquisition of Celgene (CELG) has been controversial, the shares are "too inexpensive to ignore," Schott tells investors in a research note. He sees the combined company generating 2020 earnings of $6.50 per share and 3% sales/6% earnings growth off of this base through 2025.

The FDA has cleared the investigational new drug application for Sutro Biopharma's Celgene-partnered BCMA ADC, which is on track to enter the clinic in 2019, Piper Jaffray analyst Edward Tenthoff tells investors in a research note. In addition, Celgene not exercise an option on a second program, meaning Sutro has regained U.S. rights, adds the analyst. He views this as a "clear positive" for Sutro, saying the company has regained the U.S. rights to "another exciting preclinical program." Importantly, there is no impact on Sutro's wholly-owned clinical programs, Tenthoff adds. He reiterates an Overweight rating on Sutro Biopharma with a $23 price target.

CTMXCytomX Therapeutics

$10.83

-0.25 (-2.26%)

03/11/19

03/11/19INITIATION

Fly Intel: Top five analyst initiations

Catch up on today's top five analyst initiations with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. TCR2 Therapeutics (TCRR) initiated with an Outperform at SVB Leerink, Wedbush, and BMO Capital, while being initiated with a Buy at Jefferies. 2. Barings BDC (BBDC) resumed with an Outperform at Wells Fargo. 3. Avedro (AVDR) initiated with an Overweight at JPMorgan while being initiated with an Outperform at SVB Leerink and Cowen. 4. Anchiano Therapeutics (ANCN) initiated with a Buy at Ladenburg and an Outperform at Oppenheimer. 5. CytomX Therapeutics (CTMX) initiated with an Overweight at Barclays. This list is just a portion of The Fly's analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

05/14/19

CANT

05/14/19INITIATIONTarget $21CANTOverweight

Cantor starts CytomX with Overweight, sees 'compelling' risk/reward

Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Varun Kumar last night initiated coverage of CytomX Therapeutics with an Overweight rating and $21 price target. The company's lead early-stage clinical assets, based on modified antibodies, are "partially derisked and are highly discounted at the current valuation," Kumar tells investors in a research note. For CX-2009, the analyst thinks clinical updates over the next year months should alleviate investor concerns about its safety profile and that risk of a potential clinical setback is overstated. He sees a "compelling" risk/reward for shares of CytomX.

Nomura Instinet analyst Christopher Marai halved his price target for CytomX Therapeutics to $22 but remains a buyer of the stock following the company's Q1 results. Clarification on the '2009 path forward and consistent with CX-072 data will drive share value in 2019 off near all-time-lows, Marai tells investors in a research note. His reduced price target reflects the longer than anticipated trials for '2009 and "limited" '072 updates.

PFEPfizer

$40.60

-0.12 (-0.29%)

05/09/19

BARD

05/09/19NO CHANGEBARDOutperform

Baird names Sarepta a 'Fresh Pick' ahead of Pfizer data

Baird analyst Brian Skorney named Sarepta as a "Fresh Pick" ahead of the report of competitive data due in late June from Pfizer's (PFE) Duchenne muscular dystrophy program that he predicts will "fall flat." If that turns out to be the case, it should remove the most significant overhang on Sarepta shares, contends Skorney, who keeps an Outperform rating on Sarepta.

05/07/19

ROTH

05/07/19NO CHANGETarget $51ROTHBuy

Eidos Therapeutics raised to $51 from $28 at Roth Capital

Roth Capital analyst Yasmeen Rahimi raised her price target for Eidos Therapeutics (EIDX) to $51 from $28 driven by an increase in AG10's annual price from $150,000 to $225,000 and Probability of Success adjustment from 70% to 80% after Pfizer's (PFE) tafamadis received U.S. approval with a high sticker price of $225,000, two months ahead of schedule. The analyst believes this makes life easier for Eidos Therapeutics to maintain and even expedite enrollment into its Phase 3 ATTRibute-CM trial. Rahimi reiterates a Buy rating on Eidos Therapeutics shares.

05/14/19

05/14/19DOWNGRADETarget $6Underperform

Solid Biosciences downgraded to Underperform at Credit Suisse

As previously reported, Credit Suisse analyst Martin Auster (SLDB) downgraded Solid Biosciences to Underperform from Neutral as he sees enrollment challenges and pressured timelines ahead. Earlier this year, Solid presented underwhelming initial microdystrophin data for the three patients at the low dose, necessitating dose escalation from 5E13 vg/kg to 2E14 vg/kg, he notes. With another treatment-related SAE, the analyst expects enrollment at this high dose may prove challenging, and notes that while improved efficacy at the higher dose could offset AE issues, promising initial data from Sarepta (SRPT) and positive commentary from Pfizer (PFE) on its Gene Tx program limit upside. Auster also lowered his price target on Solid's shares to $6 from $7.

CGENCompugen

$3.47

-0.13 (-3.61%)

IMMPImmutep

$1.93

-0.01 (-0.52%)

05/29/18

MAXM

05/29/18NO CHANGETarget $7MAXMBuy

Immutep price target raised to $7 from $5 at Maxim

Maxim analyst Jason McCarthy raised his price target on Immutep to $7 and kept his Buy rating after the company's announced positive data from the ongoing TACTI-mel study of IMP321. Demonstrating a response rate of 33%, the analyst says the findings validate the IMP321 mechanism of action "and compliment data from the breast cancer study".

09/28/18

RILY

09/28/18INITIATIONTarget $7.75RILYBuy

Immutep initiated with a Buy at B. Riley FBR

B. Riley FBR analyst Dylan Dupuis started Immutep with a Buy rating and $7.75 price target. The analyst views the company as a leader in LAG-3 immunotheraphy.

Catch up on today's top five analyst initiations with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. XPO Logistics (XPO) initiated with a Buy at Jefferies. 2. Allegiance Bancshares (ABTX) initiated with a Strong Buy at Raymond James. 3. 21Vianet (VNET) initiated with a Buy at Jefferies. 4. Frontdoor (FTDR) initiated with a Buy at Gabelli. 5. Anixa Biosciences (ANIX) initiated with a Buy at B. Riley FBR. This list is just a portion of The Fly's analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

Piper Jaffray analyst Joseph Catanzaro started Iovance Biotherapeutics with an Overweight rating and $20 price target. The company has "clearly demonstrated the ability to produce a cell therapy with consistent and impressive efficacy in multiple solid tumor settings," Catanzaro tells investors in a research note. He believes response rates of 30%-40% position Iovance for multiple potential approvals over the next five years that include melanoma, cervical cancer, and head and neck cancer.

04/29/19

04/29/19INITIATION

Fly Intel: Top five analyst initiations

Catch up on today's top five analyst initiations with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Iovance Biotherapeutics (IOVA) initiated with an Overweight at Piper Jaffray. 2. Tradeweb Markets (TW) initiated with a Market Perform at Wells Fargo, a Hold at Jefferies and Sandler O'Neill, an Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley and Barclays, as well as a Neutral at BofA/Merrill, Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse, and Citi. 3. Penn Virginia (PVAC) initiated with an Outperform at Imperial Capital. 4. NGM Biopharmaceuticals (NGM) initiated with an Outperform at Cowen as well as a Buy at Goldman Sachs and Citi. 5. Silk Road Medical (SILK) initiated with an Overweight at JPMorgan, an Outperform at BMO Capital, a Buy at Stifel, and a Neutral at BofA/Merrill. This list is just a portion of The Fly's analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

Piper Jaffray analyst Joseph Catanzaro kept his Overweight rating and $20 price target on Iovance Biotherapeutics after its Q1 results also disclosed that 3 of its abstracts submitted to ASCO have been accepted. The analyst believes that the company's lifileucel in melanoma update has a "clear opportunity to improve", whiles its LN-145 in cervical cancer data set could be supportive of an accelerated development path. Catanzaro sees Iovance Biotherapeutics as a "best-positioned T-cell therapy" stock, with $440M in cash on hand being sufficient to fund its operations into 2022.

H.C. Wainwright analyst Joseph Pantginis says today's clinical updates from Iovance Biotherapeutics strengthen his investment thesis. The company's efforts to amend clinical programs and generate more powerful tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes therapies are each crucial for gaining market share in multiple clinical indications beyond melanoma, Pantginis tells investors in a research note titled "Important Chess Moves to Head Regulatory Agencies off at the Pass." He believes the advances Iovance is making on multiple fronts, including the clinical and commercial, should be viewed as important inflection points for the shares. The analyst keeps a Buy rating on Iovance Biotherapeutics with a $26 price target.

According to a regulatory filing, Ryan Graves informed Uber Technologies of his intention to resign as a member of the company's board of directors, effective as of May 27, 2019, including any committees of the board of directors on which he serves. Graves' resignation was not the result of any disagreement between Graves and the company, its management, board of directors or any committee thereof, or with respect to any matter relating to the company's operations, policies or practices, according to the filing.

U.S. Energy announced that on May 21, Nasdaq notified the company that as a result of not having received its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31. 2019, and because the company is delinquent in filing its Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, the company does not comply with the requirements of Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250(c)(1) for continued listing on the Exchange. This notification has no effect on the listing of the company's common stock at this time. However, pursuant to the notice, the company was required to submit a plan by May 23, 2019 to comply with the Exchange's requirements for continued listing.

Apple is being sued by customers alleging that the U.S. tech giant is unlawfully disclosing and selling information about users' iTunes purchases as well as their personal data, Bloomberg's Robert Burnson reports. The customers claim that such alleged practices are contrary to Apple's promise in advertising that "What happens on your iPhone stays on your iPhone," Burnson notes. Reference Link

SuperCom received a notification from Nasdaq for not having timely filed its Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2018, as previously disclosed by the company on May 16, 2019. The company does not comply with the Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250(c)(1). This notice from Nasdaq has no effect currently on the listing of the company's common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market.

U.S. Energy announced that Nasdaq notified the company that as a result of not having received the company's quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31 and because the company is delinquent in filing its Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, the company does not comply with the requirements of Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250 for continued listing on the exchange. This notification has no effect on the listing of the company's common stock at this time. However, pursuant to the notice, the company was required to submit a plan by May 23 to comply with the exchange's requirements for continued listing. The company has submitted the plan to the exchange. If the exchange accepts the company's Plan, the exchange may grant an exception of up to 180 calendar days from the Form 10-K's due date, or until October 14 to regain compliance. The company continues to work toward the filing of the Form 10-Q and the Form 10-K with the SEC as soon as practicable.

Qiagen (QGEN) announced the launch of its therascreen PIK3CA RGQ PCR Kit after it received U.S. regulatory approval as a companion diagnostic to aid in identifying breast cancer patients eligible for treatment with PIQRAY, a newly approved therapy developed and marketed by Novartis (NVS). The therascreen PIK3CA Kit is the first companion diagnostic assay to obtain premarket approval from the FDA for use in any cancer indication for detection of activating mutations in the PIK3CA gene. It is also the first FDA approved assay for guiding treatment decisions in breast cancer using plasma specimens as a liquid biopsy.

Brazil's ANAC said it has suspended all flights and operations of Avianca Brasil in the South American nation as a precuartionary measure, Reuters reports. The move follows Avianca's filing for bankruptcy in late 2018, the report says. "All the flights are suspended until the company proves it has the capacity to maintain operations safely," ANAC said. Reference Link

Apple has bought Tueo Health, a start-up that was making a system to help parents monitor asthma symptoms in sleeping kids, CNBC's Christina Farr and Steve Kovach report, citing a person familiar with the deal. It is not clear how much the U.S. tech giant paid for the start-up, the authors note. Reference Link

A review of Boeing's grounded 737 MAX aircraft has expanded to include emergency procedures used by pilots on earlier models of the plane, further delaying its return to service, the Wall Street Journal's Andy Pasztor reports, citing U.S. government officials. The FAA hasn't questioned the safety of older aircraft currently in service, but the broadened review will play a major role in adding months to the time expected to get the grounded fleet of 737 MAX jets back in the skies, Pasztor notes. As part of the FAA's safety analysis of a proposed software fix for the fleet, the agency is also weighing changes to how pilots of the entire 737 family are trained to respond when the flight-control computer or other systems suddenly push the jet's nose down, the author says. Reference Link

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), the SPX option derived measure of implied volatility, fell 1.07 today to close at 15.85, while the underlying SPX index gained 3.82 to close at $2826.06, a 0.14% increase. 274,267 VIX option contracts traded, 38.73% of the typical daily volume for the product. Calls made up 74.0% of the volume.

Volume was average for this time of day. Breadth was mixed with issues and volume bullish while new highs to new lows were bearish (negative divergence). Advancing Issues: 2009 / Declining Issues: 1048 -- for a ratio of 1.9 to 1. Advancing Volume: 915,942,000 / Declining Volume: 681,710,000 -- for a ratio of 1.3 to 1. New 52-Week Highs: 57 / New 52-Week Lows: 114.

Volume was below average for this time of day. Breadth was bullish across the board. Advancing Issues: 1963 / Declining Issues: 956 -- for a ratio of 2.1 to 1. Advancing Volume: 1,549,354,000 / Declining Volume: 986,891,000 -- for a ratio of 1.6 to 1. New 52-Week Highs: 138 / New 52-Week Lows: 89.

Regional Health Properties, Inc. announcement concerning the company's noncompliance with the continued listing standards of NYSE American LLC. On May 21, 2019, the company received an official notice of noncompliance from the Exchange stating that the company is not in compliance with the Exchange's continued listing standards under the timely filing criteria outlined in Section 1007 of the Exchange's company Guide because the company failed to timely file its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2019, which was due to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission no later than May 20, 2019. For the reasons previously disclosed in its Form 12b-25 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 16, 2019, the company has not timely filed the Delayed Form 10-Q because additional time is needed to finalize the Delayed Form 10-Q and furnish the XBRL Interactive Data File exhibits required by Item 601b101 of Regulation S-K. The company is actively working to complete the Delayed Form 10-Q and intends to file the Delayed Form 10-Q under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, within the next thirty days. As a result of the foregoing, the company has become subject to the procedures and requirements of Section 1007 of the Company Guide. During the six-month period from the date of the Filing Delinquency, the Exchange will monitor the company and the status of the Delayed Form 10-Q and any subsequent reports until the Filing Delinquency is cured. If the company fails to cure the Filing Delinquency within the Initial Cure Period, the Exchange may, in its sole discretion, allow the company's securities to be traded for up to an additional six-month period, depending on the company's specific circumstances. If the Exchange determines that an Additional Cure Period is not appropriate, suspension and delisting procedures will commence in accordance with the procedures set forth in Section 1010 of the Company Guide.